Photos: Iran Marks Navy Day

A senior Iranian commander underlined the Navy's self-sufficiency in producing different types of weapons and military tools and systems, and said the Navy has grown so powerful that it can defend the country against any kind of air, surface and subsurface threats successfully.

"To comply with the policies of the Commander-in-Chief (of the Iranian Armed Forces Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei) and to fulfill its missions and stand against the aggressors, the Navy has obtained whatever is needed through the industrious efforts of domestic experts," Lieutenant Commander of the Iranian Army Brigadier General Abdolrahim Moussavi said in the port city of Bandar Abbas on Saturday.

He pointed to the Navy's efforts to improve its defense and combat power, and said, "One of the features of a strategic naval force is its ability to carry out its missions in oceanic waters and in long distances and to stand against all subsurface, surface and air threats alone, and today the Iranian Navy has shown that it enjoys this power and capability."

In relevant remarks on Monday, Iranian Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said that the power of the Iranian Navy has doubled compared to what existed before.

The Iranian commander said the Navy forces provide security for ships and shipping lines in open seas and have made remarkable success in confronting pirates.

Rear Admiral Sayyari said that the Iranian Navy fights pirates "independently in open seas while most of other countries present in international waters are acting under the leadership of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)".

He further noted that the Iranian Navy is among 35 world states present in the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Aden, Bab-el-Mandeb and the Red Sea regions to provide security for commercial fleets as well as oil tankers.

The Iranian Navy dispatched its 27th flotilla of warships to the high seas in August to protect the country's cargo ships and oil tankers against pirates.

The Iranian Navy has been conducting anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden since November 2008, when Somali raiders hijacked the Iranian-chartered cargo ship, MV Delight, off the coast of Yemen.

Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan announced on Wednesday that Iran plans to launch a semi-heavy submarine soon in a bid to boost its naval capabilities in the high seas.

"The Defense Ministry will take another step in developing the operational capabilities of this strategic force (Navy) after this advanced submarine (Fateh) joins the Navy fleet in future," General Dehqan said.

He stressed that as before the Defense Ministry is ready to help the Iranian Navy reach an international balance with regard to its presence in territorial and free waters.

General Dehqan reiterated that the Iranian Navy has shown that it is one of the main security elements and contributors in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman.

He pointed to the defense ministry's backup for Iran's naval forces, and said, "Design and manufacture of different surface, subsurface, light, semi-heavy and heavy vessels like Zolfaqar missile-launching frigate, the advanced Jamaran II destroyer, Al-Sabehat, Qaem, Midget, Qadir and Huvana submarines in different classes, flying boats in different classes and floating pools in different tonnage are part of the Defense Ministry's backup."